HaaS 100 (late January 2026)

Hardware-as-a-service (HaaS) is gaining momentum across a variety of industries. Many of the early adopters of HaaS are in robotics, offering robots-as-a-service (RaaS) to decrease barriers to entry and improve overall value to customers. Others offer machine-as-a-service (MaaS), device-as-a-service (DaaS), or equipment-as-a-service (EaaS).

Some companies pitch outcomes more than assets, offering data-as-a-service or platform-as-a-service models. From network-as-a-service to facades cleaning; managed service providers (MSPs) to managed security service providers (MSSPs); and autonomous construction equipment to diagnostic sensors and 3D printers, these companies are on the cutting-edge of their fields.

This post is part of a series about modern hardware companies, their business models, and the future of HaaS. For more, see posts from early and late October, early and late November, early and late December, and early January.

Vention

• Founded date: 2016
• Location: Montreal, Canada & Berlin, Germany
• Employees: ~330
• What they do: AI-powered software and hardware for industrial automation and robotic applications
• Key customers: L’Oreal, Hershey, 3M, Boeing, Amazon, OpenAi, Lunasa, Marcal, Solestial, MIT, Carnegie Mellon University
• Website: vention.io

Vention provides a unified ecosystem for rapid industrial and physical AI-powered automation, built on its Manufacturing Automation Platform (MAP). Its software suite includes CAD-based design (MachineBuilder), no-code and Python programming, digital-twin simulation and cloud deployment (MachineLogic), and real-time monitoring and analytics (MachineAnalytics). Customers use the platform to design, program, and deploy robotic cells, palletizers, conveyors, machine-tending systems, automated inspection, and other factory automation workflows. All systems are built from Vention’s modular, plug-and-play hardware (frames, actuators, conveyors, sensors, and AI-ready vision components) engineered for fast deployment and robot-agnostic integration. Vention Flagship product MachineMotion AI (MMAI) unifies motion control, AI decisioning, and vision processing in a single device. With Physical AI embedded across hardware and software, manufacturers can go from design to production in days rather than months.

Vention pairs capital equipment sales with recurring software revenue. Customers purchase modular hardware and can subscribe to intelligent software, such as MachineAnalytics, with advanced AI features. This hybrid model enables manufacturers to adopt automation flexibly, scale efficiently, and unlock the full potential of Physical AI in a short amount of time.

“Traditional industrial automation is complex, fragmented across many suppliers, and often demands deep technical expertise and long commissioning cycles,” said Etienne Lacroix, CEO of Vention. “Manufacturers are now asking for the opposite. They want automation that is as intuitive, unified, and reliable as modern software. Physical AI is what finally makes that possible.”

R-Zero

• Founded date: 2020
• Location: Salt Lake City, Utah
• Employees: ~60
• What they do: Smart-building sensors + indoor-environment analytics + energy optimization
• Key customers: Mayo Clinic, Salesforce, Indeed, Kaiser Permanente, Hines
• Website: rzero.com

R-Zero offers a vertically integrated smart-building platform that combines proprietary sensors with a cloud analytics system to help organizations improve HVAC efficiency, understand how their spaces are used, and monitor indoor air quality in real-time. Hardware includes occupancy sensors for desks and rooms, AI-based people counters for entryways, thermal area counters, RESET-accredited air-quality monitors, and on-premise Hubs that securely relay sensor data to the cloud. These devices capture live occupancy, environmental, and comfort data across entire portfolios, informing decisions about workplace design, energy use, and building performance. Customers use the R-Zero Connect dashboard to track utilization trends, automate room releases, identify underused areas, optimize ventilation, and maintain healthy indoor conditions without sacrificing comfort or productivity.

The company operates a hybrid model centered on CapEx hardware paired with required SaaS subscriptions. Sensors, gateways, monitors, and HVAC filtration products are purchased outright, either individually or as deployment kits, while the Connect software platform is billed annually per device or via bundled portfolio tiers. The subscription unlocks real-time dashboards, historical analytics, alerts, and access to R-Zero’s APIs. For HVAC energy optimization, R-Zero also offers a shared-savings model in which customers pay from verified reductions in energy spend—covering advanced filters, occupancy-based ventilation controls, and ongoing monitoring.

RedViking

• Founded date: 2010 (spun out from SuperiorControls)
• Location: Plymouth, Michigan
• Employees: ~180
• What they do: Automated guided vehicles (AGVs), autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), dynamic test systems, and manufacturing execution system (MES) software
• Key customers: NASA, major aerospace OEMs, global defense contractors, EV and commercial vehicle manufacturers
• Website: redviking.com

RedViking builds precision-engineered solutions for the most demanding industrial environments, combining automation, software, and rugged hardware to modernize manufacturing at scale. The company’s core offerings include autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), automated guided vehicles (AGVs), dynamic powertrain testing systems, and the modular Argonaut MES platform. RedViking’s FlexForm AGVs are designed for flexibility and scalability on complex assembly lines, while its custom automation and robotic integration capabilities serve aerospace, defense, EV, and off-highway vehicle manufacturers. In addition to bespoke factory systems, RedViking provides drivetrain and component test stands for R&D and MRO, including high-performance gearboxes and blade balance towers used by clients like NASA and the U.S. Department of Defense.

The company’s business model reflects a hybrid between capital systems integration and solution-as-a-service delivery, offering end-to-end design, build, integration, and lifetime support. While many systems are built to spec and purchased outright, RedViking’s long-term engagements often include custom automation bundled with control software, MES integration, and post-deployment service packages, creating a continuous support structure more typical of hardware-as-a-service (HaaS) models. Their in-house controls, systems engineering, and software development capabilities enable turnkey delivery across facilities worldwide. Following their 2024 acquisition by Lincoln Electric, RedViking now brings its engineering expertise to an even broader range of industries under a unified automation strategy.

Plus One Robotics

• Founded date: 2016
• Location: San Antonio, Texas
• Employees: ~60
• What they do: AI-powered vision, supervised autonomy, and turnkey robotic workcells for induction, depalletizing, and palletizing
• Key customers: FedEx, DHL, Pitney Bowes, MSC Industrial, Home Depot
• Website: plusonerobotics.com

Plus One Robotics provides a blend of AI vision software and turnkey robotic workcells designed for the highest-variability tasks in warehouse automation. Its systems combine PickOne, a 2D/3D AI perception engine, with Yonder, a supervised autonomy platform that routes edge-case exceptions to trained remote “Crew Chiefs” who resolve them in seconds. On the hardware side, Plus One offers pre-engineered, robot-agnostic cells that pair industrial or collaborative robot arms with integrated conveyors, sensors, grippers, HMIs, and safety systems. Flagship systems include DepalOne, a portable palletizing/depalletizing cell, and InductOne, a dual-arm induction system capable of 2,200-3,300 picks per hour. These solutions are optimized for mixed parcels, bags, cartons, grocery items, and rainbow or mixed pallets—environments where variability has historically limited automation performance.

Plus One operates a hybrid recurring sales model in which customers acquire the robotic cell hardware as a CapEx purchase and then subscribe to essential software and service layers. Systems like DepalOne and InductOne are sold as turnkey packages that include the robot arm, gripper, conveyors, lighting, safety equipment, and on-site installation. On top of the hardware, customers license PickOne vision software and Yonder supervised autonomy, along with updates, analytics, support, and ongoing exception-handling coverage. This structure ensures that software, perception, and human-in-the-loop performance—core to throughput and reliability—remain continuously delivered as recurring services.

Rivelin Robotics

• Founded date: 2018
• Location: Sheffield, Yorkshire, England
• Employees: ~10
• What they do: Robotic post-processing automation for metal 3D printing
• Key customers: The University of Sheffield, GKN Aerospace, Renishaw, Ministry of Defence
• Website: rivelinrobotics.com

Rivelin Robotics builds robotic systems that automate the labor-intensive, error-prone post-processing phase of metal additive manufacturing (AM). The company’s flagship solution, the NetShape platform, combines industrial robotic arms, multi-axis control, advanced sensors, and proprietary software to perform tasks like support removal and surface finishing with consistency and precision. The system uses a mix of deterministic algorithms and machine learning to reduce defects by up to 90% and significantly cut operational costs. Designed to be plug-and-play, NetShape requires no background in CNC, CAM, or robotics programming, making it accessible to manufacturers in industries with strict quality and traceability requirements—including aerospace, medical devices, and energy.

Rivelin offers its platform through a subscription-based Hardware-as-a-Service (HaaS) model, which includes hardware, software, updates, maintenance, and support. Customers sign 12-month service contracts that turn what would traditionally be a CapEx-heavy purchase into a predictable operational expense. This approach gives manufacturers the flexibility to scale up or adapt as production needs change, without committing to a large upfront investment. In select cases, Rivelin is also piloting usage-based pricing models, such as pay-per-part or pay-per-kilogram, to accommodate partners with specific throughput targets or tight margins.